I bring up Zubie because he used his skating to body up players. Once he got that Fetisov hip check down he was pretty hard to beat along the wall.

You're right Campbell uses his skating too.

Zubov kept working on his game, I admired that guy a lot. He wasn't that good defensively until he went to Dallas and really worked on his game and this was a yearly thing with him, the guy just kept getting better and it wasn't like he was a young guy either.

It's sad that work ethic isn't a given with every player.

As long as these kids can pick up Sid's work ethic because of the team they are a part of, they will go far. I am a huge Malkin fan like every other Pens fan, but the moment he started to finally pick up Sid's work ethic with health, after a bad injury mind you, he became another player, the best in the league hands down.

Zubov kept working on his game, I admired that guy a lot. He wasn't that good defensively until he went to Dallas and really worked on his game and this was a yearly thing with him, the guy just kept getting better and it wasn't like he was a young guy either.

It's sad that work ethic isn't a given with every player.

As long as these kids can pick up Sid's work ethic because of the team they are a part of, they will go far. I am a huge Malkin fan like every other Pens fan, but the moment he started to finally pick up Sid's work ethic with health, after a bad injury mind you, he became another player, the best in the league hands down.

Yeah i like Zubov a lot too. IMO he was right up there with Coffey in terms of elite passing defenseman. Its pretty well known that "someone" didn't like Zubov during his time with the Pens. I have to guess that its more about Zubov off the ice more than on.

Good call on Sid. I think he had as much to do with the Pens losing that country club atmosphere as MT. Never mind him turning some players around, he's turned the organization around. He's so gung ho about everything. To be honest I think the Pens reighn him in a little bit... I really, REALLY hate that.

From what I remember, Mario didn't like Zubov mainly because of how he ran a poweplay. Mario and Zubov both wanted to QB the PP...that didn't fly back in the day. Puck went through 66.

That wasn't the problem between Zubov and Lemieux. The problem was Zubov would never shoot the puck to the point other teams knew he would never shoot the puck. It used to frustrate Lemieux to no end. You could see Lemieux kill Zubov with his eyes after not shooting the puck.

That said, I loved Zubov. He was Kris Letang minus the grit and shot. Amazing skater and playmaker. When I saw we traded him for Kevin Hatcher, I about threw up I was so disappointed in Patrick at the time.

That wasn't the problem between Zubov and Lemieux. The problem was Zubov would never shoot the puck to the point other teams knew he would never shoot the puck. It used to frustrate Lemieux to no end. You could see Lemieux kill Zubov with his eyes after not shooting the puck.

That said, I loved Zubov. He was Kris Letang minus the grit and shot. Amazing skater and playmaker. When I saw we traded him for Kevin Hatcher, I about threw up I was so disappointed in Patrick at the time.

Thats what was said but the PP was clicking at 25% for most of that year. It makes me wonder if it was Zubov's off ice troubles that came into play.

Maybe they just weren't on the same page on the ice. I remember Mario's 5 goal game against the Blues. On one PP Zubov didn't get him the puck and Lemieux gave him some eye daggers.

Getting back to Pouliot... why do people attack his physical game? He might not be a big splashy hitter but he gets involved and rubs out players along the boards. He's not wimpy by any means.

Thats what was said but the PP was clicking at 25% for most of that year. It makes me wonder if it was Zubov's off ice troubles that came into play.

Maybe they just weren't on the same page on the ice. I remember Mario's 5 goal game against the Blues. On one PP Zubov didn't get him the puck and Lemieux gave him some eye daggers.

Getting back to Pouliot... why do people attack his physical game? He might not be a big splashy hitter but he gets involved and rubs out players along the boards. He's not wimpy by any means.

Exactly. He isnt going to destroy guys out there but as you said, he gets involved and is also doing it more often. He has a fairly stocky frame so he will be able to use that to his advantage. It has been stated multile times by himself and the coach that adding a more physical side is important

Thats what was said but the PP was clicking at 25% for most of that year. It makes me wonder if it was Zubov's off ice troubles that came into play.

Maybe they just weren't on the same page on the ice. I remember Mario's 5 goal game against the Blues. On one PP Zubov didn't get him the puck and Lemieux gave him some eye daggers.

Teams would literally give Zubov the entire top of the umbrella down to about 15-20 feet in front of the net and he would never take a shot. I remember the Civic Arena crowd distinctly yelling at him to shoot probably more than any other time in history for another D-man in the organization.

It would be comical in that he would have so much space and constantly look to pass.

Even still, Zubov was one of my favorite Pens. His skating and playmaking was just filthy. Really pissed me off that we traded him for such a ****** player that I hated even before he sucked on the Pens.

Teams would literally give Zubov the entire top of the umbrella down to about 15-20 feet in front of the net and he would never take a shot. I remember the Civic Arena crowd distinctly yelling at him to shoot probably more than any other time in history for another D-man in the organization.

It would be comical in that he would have so much space and constantly look to pass.

Even still, Zubov was one of my favorite Pens. His skating and playmaking was just filthy. Really pissed me off that we traded him for such a ****** player that I hated even before he sucked on the Pens.

Yeah i like Zubov a lot too. IMO he was right up there with Coffey in terms of elite passing defenseman. Its pretty well known that "someone" didn't like Zubov during his time with the Pens. I have to guess that its more about Zubov off the ice more than on.

Good call on Sid. I think he had as much to do with the Pens losing that country club atmosphere as MT. Never mind him turning some players around, he's turned the organization around. He's so gung ho about everything. To be honest I think the Pens reighn him in a little bit... I really, REALLY hate that.

Zubov was a Mario trade just like Nasland. Mario didn't want them so Craig Patrick gave them away.

Not so much 'less' as 'different'. It's good to see the team start strong this year unlike the last two seasons. Portland will be interesting to watch this season and even more so next year.

Pouliot has been great so far. I really hope he continues to turn into my expectation of a 2007-08 Sergei Gonchar. A ton of offense, great skating and the ability to tie up guys in the corner and neutralize the opposing rush.

Was at the Winterhawks/Giants game tonight. Couple things I noticed about Pouliot was his puck carrying ability. He starts in his own end and can lug the puck up the ice effortlessly. Once he hits the other blue line he makes a move or two then dishes it off to a winger busting in. His passes for most of the night where tape to tape and his lateral movement was very good.

He plays first pairing, first PP and from what I saw usually first PK. For most of the PP's he is the guy that brings it from the d-zone into the o-zone. Im pretty sure he ended the night in the "minus" but that was due to terrible goaltending from both sides (more so the hawks).

The guy just doesnt get rattled. Its almost as if he knows most of the forecheckers cant check him. He also wasnt afraid to mix it up after a number of whistles and is more agressive/chippy than his pre-draft profile stated. He tried to pick a fight after a couple quick goals by the giants but the other player wasnt willing.

All in all I was definitely pleased. If he can put on a bit more muscle and strength, he will have no problems taking the next step and being in the NHL in the near future.

Another player (although i dont know if it will translate to the NHL) that was great tonight was Ty Rattie. Fast, great at creating chances and extremely shifty. Doesnt appear to be overly big and got outmuscled by bigger d-men occasionally, but an entertaining player to watch.